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Nicole LaDue, Ph.D. Recording

Department of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Northern Illinois University

Dr. LaDue’s research leverages methods and theory from cognitive and educational psychology to solve problems in geoscience and STEM education. Interdisciplinarity is a hallmark of discipline-based research and an important attribute of Dr. LaDue’s research is on spatial thinking in the geosciences. Recent work on the theoretical underpinnings of active learning in STEM and in GER are examples demonstrating the benefits of collaboration between DBER and non-DBER researchers. Collaboration beyond our traditional borders can accelerate our findings and build capacity for new research.

Mariana Silva, Ph.D. Recording

Department of Computer Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Dr. Silva is known for her teaching innovations and her research in large-scale computer-based assessments and collaborative learning in STEM university courses, with extensive experience in course development for engineering, computer science, and mathematics. She is currently the PI for the NSF IUSE grant, “Enhancing equity and access via digitally-mediated collaborative learning experiences,” which aims to explore the interconnections between online learning, equity, and access. Silva is passionate about teaching and improving the classroom experience for both students and instructors.

Rachel Rupnow, Ph.D. Recording

Department of Mathematical Sciences, Northern Illinois University

Dr. Rupnow investigates connections across contexts related to the teaching and learning of undergraduate mathematics. This includes examinations of mathematicians’ homework assigning practices, conceptual understandings of content in proof-based courses, and relationships between beliefs and instruction across STEM disciplines. Recently, she has focused on what “mathematical sameness” means to faculty and students, with a goal of increasing conceptual coherency across mathematics and of creating robust connections between mathematics content and applications to science and engineering.

Tatiane Russo-Tait, Ph.D. Recording

Cellular Biology, University of Georgia

Dr. Russo-Tait investigates components of college STEM learning environments and culture to understand how to best promote equity and justice in STEM education. Her current research focuses on the equity-related beliefs and practices of college science instructors, and the experiences and perspectives of students from minoritized backgrounds in college science classrooms.

Carina Rebello, Ph.D. Recording

Department of Physics, Toronto Metropolitan University

Dr. Rebello specializes in science education and physics education research. Her work takes an interdisciplinary approach to the study of teaching and learning. Her research draws on research in other fields, such as the learning sciences, psychology, cognitive science, and the use of technology in physics education, to study the dynamics of learning and to develop models of how physics students think. She applies these models to tackle a broad range of issues related to physics education, with a strong focus on transfer of learning to unique contexts, evidence-based reasoning, scientific argumentation, design thinking, computational thinking, and problem-solving.

Field Watts, Ph.D. Recording

Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Dr. Watts conducts research investigating instructional approaches to elicit and support student reasoning, with a specific focus on writing tasks in chemistry courses. His research explores the application of machine learning and automated text analysis to deliver automated feedback to students and instructors. Dr. Watts’ goal is to characterize high-impact instructional practices and develop strategies to support their use in the classroom.